1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to antennas. More specifically, the present invention relates to the architecture of a surface-mounted multi-band LTE antenna that covers the frequency band of 698-960 MHz (LTE 700/800/900 bands) and 2400-2500 MHz (WLAN 2.4 G band). The antenna has high gain and high radiation efficiency, and is used for a variety of wireless communication devices applications.
2. Description of the Related Art
The prior art discusses various antennas.
Current wireless communication devices such as cellular phone, laptop, tablet computer etc. have an increasing demand for multi-band, high gain, high efficiency and compact size LTE antennas. However, in most cases the design of multi-band LTE antenna is very difficult, especially when the LTE700/800/900 bands are included, since it is very hard to get enough bandwidth with good return loss for each frequency band.
General definitions for terms utilized in the pertinent art are set forth below.
BLUETOOTH technology is a standard short range radio link that operates in the unlicensed 2.4 gigahertz band.
Code Division Multiple Access (“CDMA”) is a spread spectrum communication system used in second generation and third generation cellular networks, and is described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,901,307.
GSM, Global System for Mobile Communications is a second generation digital cellular network.
The Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (“UMTS”) is a wireless standard.
Long Term Evolution (“LTE”) is a standard for wireless communication of high-speed data for mobile phones and data terminals and is based on the GSM/EDGE and UMTS/HSPA communication network technologies.
LTE Frequency Bands include 698-798 MHz (Band 12, 13, 14, 17); 791-960 MHz (Band 5, 6, 8, 18, 19, 20); 1710-2170 MHz (Band 1, 2, 3, 4, 9, 10, 23, 25, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 39); 1427-1660.5 MH (Band 11, 21, 24); 2300-2700 MHz (Band 7, 38, 40, 41); 3400-3800 MHz (Band 22, 42, 43).
Antenna impedance and the quality of the impedance match are most commonly characterized by either return loss or Voltage Standing Wave Ratio.
Surface Mount Technology (“SMT”) is a process for manufacturing electronic circuits wherein the components are mounted or placed directly onto a surface of a printed circuit board (“PCB”).
The APPLE IPHONE® 5 LTE Bands include: LTE700/1700/2100 (698-806 MHz/1710-1785 MHz/1920-2170 MHz); LTE 850/1800/2100 (824-894 MHz/1710-1880 MHz/1920-2170 MHz); and LTE 700/850/1800/1900/2100 (698-806 MHz/824-894 MHz/1710-1880 MHz/1850-1990 MHz/1920/2170).
The SAMSUNG GALAXY® SIII LTE Bands include: LTE 800/1800/2600 (806-869 MHz/1710-1880 MHz/2496-2690 MHz.
The NOKIA LUMIA® 920 LTE Bands: LTE 700/1700/2100 (698-806 MHz/1710-1785 MHz/1920-2170 MHz); LTE 800/900/1800/2100/2600 (806-869 MHz/880-960 MHz/1710-1880 MHz/1920-2170 MHz/2496-2690 MHz).
For wireless communication devices applications, there are generally three challenging requirements for embedded antenna: good performance, compact size and low cost. What is needed is an antenna that can meet the needs of the LTE/WiFi mobile device market.